Leading for Innovation: How to construct space that fosters creativity

Today’s theological systems—churches, seminaries, and non-profit organizations—existamidst a choppy sea of cultural, social, and economic forces. Realities such as an unpredictable economy, a changing landscape of religious vocation, and the democratization of knowledge, often create serious adaptive challenges for theological organizations. An inability to address such adaptive challenges leaves organizations prone to chaos and even failure.

Cultivating the ability to respond creatively in the face of adaptive change may be an antidote for failure. Therefore, constructing holding environments that foster creativity may be important for the ongoing viability of theological organizations. In an effort to articulate how to foster organizational creativity, we can learn from the theological entrepreneurs in our midst. By examining how theological entrepreneurs create in response to a changing world, we might extract principles useful for how to foster creativity in larger organizational settings.

For more on this topic, some hear Michaela o’Donnell Long from Fuller Theological Seminary at the ARL Annual Meeting – April 16-18, 2015 in Chicago.